Disable Smilies in This Post. Show Signature: include your profile signature. Only registered users may have signatures.

*If HTML and/or UBB Code are enabled, this means you can use HTML and/or UBB Code in your message.

If you have previously registered, but forgotten your password, click here.

T O P I C R E V I E W

prontouk

Just found this patch in a group bought at auctions. I've seen on web that it's one of early MIR patches. Is it an original one or do you think it's a recent reproduction?

Clear plastic coating over what looks like a felt background.

hoorenz

It is a reproduction made in early 1988 by Stewart Aviation in England. It was part of a set of generic Soviet patches, also including a Salyut logo, the Institute of Biomedical Problems (IMBP), the ‘Leonov’ CCCP-rocket and the Vimpel ‘Diamond’ patch.

Always nice to know what you really have in the drawer as it is getting ever more confusing.

spaceman

Still a nice reproduction, worth keeping as a souvenir as we can't always have the originals. Stewart Aviation are able to fill the gaps.

SparkR_13

Would anyone have the time frame for the switch of this rectangular style to the more rounded style for the MIR program?

hoorenz

Yes. December 21, 1988. Of the Soyuz TM-4 crew, Musa Manarov was the first to wear the rounded patch on his Sokol suit during launch. Titov and Levchenko did still wear the old version.

During the flight itself, the new patch was also gradually introduced on the onboard Penguin suits, which were probably replaced with the arrival of a Progress freighter. Up to that point, a smaller, square patch with the same symbols was used on the onboard clothing.

I forgot to point out that this is not the Mir program patch. It is the logo of the Zvezda spacesuit factory. One of the Shuttle/Mir crews did not realize this and used it in the initial design of their flight patch (STS-86). Since no company logo's are allowed in crew patches, they had to replace it with a more neutral globe and flight elements.

I shot this quick image, where you see the original and souvenir Mir patches backdropped by a picture of Titov's TM-4 Sokol. As you can see, Stewart over-estimated it's size somewhat!

SparkR_13

As always... GREAT Information from the expert! I just picked up that Stewart Aviation one in a trade so now I can place in the right spot.